Komar Kawatra moved from Pakistan to Pune, India, as a child and grew up in a modest but happy home. Living in the education capital of the country, Kawatra attended high school, college, and university in Pune, earning degrees in physics before moving to Bombay and beginning his career at the Atomic Energy Commission. He didn’t stay there for long, however, as Kawatra’s career took him from India to Australia, Canada, and ultimately the US, where he became an associate professor at Michigan Tech in 1977. Over time, he worked his way through the university’s ranks, becoming a professor, a chair of the Department of Mining and Materials Processing Engineering, and chair of the Department of Chemical Engineering. Kawatra’s research initially focused on instrumentation but expanded to mineral processing. His primary area of interest is in particulate process plants and the treatment of chemical, industrial, and agricultural wastes without the use of carbon. For his work, he has earned numerous awards, scholarships, and grants for research and travel, making his impact on industry practically limitless. But above all, Kawatra always puts his students first, finding them opportunity after opportunity to get ahead and excel in their education and careers. Kawatra is the recipient of numerous awards, including the Taggart Award (SME), the Robert H. Richards Award (AIME), the Frank F. Aplan Award (AIME), and the 1987 Research Award (Michigan Tech). When he is not researching or working with his students, Kawatra can be found giving lectures, attending society events, and enjoying the many opportunities industry offers.